Just for Fun... #36: Well, not exactly...

No Fun here!! This is all Business!!Being the resident Handyman (and Box Maker) at the Restaurant, it was inquired of me whether I thought I could make a sort of “Suggestion” box, so the customers could offer up any comments or criticism…The Requirements are that it has to be wall-hung, that it needs to lock, and that it needs to be large enough to fit a certain sized comment card… I requested some 3/8” Walnut from the Owner (or any Exotic that caught her eye) and received 3/4” Poplar!!Well, it’s going to be a rugged one!! LOLI began work yesterday by plowing out a dado for the bottom panel, then started on the many finger joints for the sides…These went pretty slowly with the 3/4” thickness of the wood…This was as far as I got yesterday, three sides standing…

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Now Today, I began work on the back of this box. This will be a different arrangement, as I need some “Ears” to screw the box to the wall… There’s also this, the Poplar Board she had bought, was 3/4” X 12” (or 11 1/2” or some such) so the board is much wider than the necessary height…Not a problem!! This will give me a perfect place to add some lettering!!First I had to do a mock-up of the word “Comments” to see if it’ll fit proper…I’ll transfer this onto that thin strip of Mahogany… After finishing, the Mahogany should stand out well from the much lighter Poplar…Then it was back to jointing… Here is with one corner left to go…And here is with all four sides up, and the Mahogany marked…The piece in front of the box will be the lid, and is the continuation of the front, i.e. the wide board is “folded” to cover both front and top… The lid will be simply hinged by pins in the rear corners…Here’s one final pic, of the sides laid flat to expose the finger joints, and the curious arrangement of the back…There’s much more fun…er, excuse me, serious work still to do but it’s coming along… :)

Nice work Mike. It is sure to look great coming from your hands no matter what the wood species. It will probably be filled with suggestions that you make more boxes!

I also like to do box joints with my scroll saw. It’s far quieter and less dusty than using routers and table saws. Also you can stack cut two sides at once if you want, and if you’re only doing one box, I think it’s just as quick.